Zelenskyy signs law restoring competitive hiring for public service
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has signed a law providing for the phased restoration of competitive hiring for state service and local government positions. Competitions will begin with category A posts, followed by categories B and C, while appointments without competitions remain possible in wartime areas.
Key points
- The law was signed by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and is numbered 5031-IX.
- The Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, adopted the law on October 26 with support from 247 MPs.
- Competitions will restart first for category A positions, followed by categories B and C in areas without active combat.
- Appointments without competitions will remain possible in territories where combat operations continue.
- Veterans and veterans with equal professional competence will receive priority for state service positions.
- The law introduces personnel and candidate reserves, internal competitions and adaptation periods for new civil servants.
- A civil servant may no longer be dismissed based on a single negative evaluation.
Why it matters
The law restores competitive selection as the standard way to enter public service while preserving flexibility for wartime conditions. It also introduces personnel reserves, internal competitions and adaptation procedures, offers veterans priority when professional competence is equal, and simplifies promotion for civil servants with excellent annual evaluations.
What happened
Zelenskyy signed a law on the phased restoration of competitions for state service and local government jobs. The document, prepared by the National Agency of Ukraine for Civil Service, provides for competitions to restart first for category A positions, followed by categories B and C, in Ukrainian-controlled territories without active combat. Workers appointed without competitions during martial law will have deadlines for competitions announced and conducted, and managers will be able to decide whether their service continues. Appointments without competitions remain permitted in state and local government bodies located in areas of active hostilities.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian reporting emphasizes the gradual restoration of competitions, the handling of wartime appointments, veterans' priority, career-progression rules and the connection between the law and public-administration reform. Coverage also highlighted the parliamentary vote, the document number and the agency that prepared the bill.
Where reporting differs
There is a discrepancy over the bill's adoption date: Ukrinform reported that bill No. 13478-1 was adopted in second reading and as a whole on April 26, while LІГА.net LB.ua and Detector Media reported that the law was adopted on October 26.
Background
The Verkhovna Rada adopted the law on October 26 with support from 247 people's deputies. The National Agency of Ukraine for Civil Service prepared document No. 5031-IX. The government presented the law as part of public-administration reform and as a step toward meeting commitments under the 2024–2027 Ukraine Plan within Ukraine Facility.